Won't Come Between Us
by ThatCollegeKid
Summary: She heard the whispers. Saw the stares. And she couldn't help but wonder if they were right. My first "Bloom into You" work. Constructive criticism is appreciated.


Yuu heard the whispers. She saw the side glances. And yes, she shriveled a bit under the glares. Ever since she and Touko had officially become an item, they only got louder and more obvious.

Her closeness to the student council president was an open secret at the school. It wasn't exactly hard to miss: Touko and Yuu were essentially glued at the hip whenever they were together. Not that Yuu ever really had a say in the matter; Touko had always been pretty clingy.

_It's not like I don't like it, though… _Yuu thought to herself, a small blush creeping into her cheeks.

But that didn't stop all of the rumors and gossip from getting to her. It was strange. Those things had never bothered her before, mostly because she wasn't ever the subject of such things. But now, it wasn't just her. Touko was a target, too. No one had the courage to say it to their faces, but the harsh words were often impossible to ignore.

"Why did the Student Council President choose her? She could have done much better."

"She's not anything special. I bet she's her girlfriend just to make her feel better."

"She doesn't deserve to be so close to her."

The last one hurt the most. While she tried to ignore it with the typical indifference she showed towards such things, she couldn't help the words settling uncomfortably in her mind.

Touko had a reputation to maintain. She was the Student Council President, one of the most popular, most beautiful, and most romantically sought-after girls in the whole school and Yuu was just...Yuu. A first year with a lack of emotional investment in most things and a streak of indecisiveness.

Compared to Touko, she was nothing special. Not at all.

As she trudged her way to the Student Council building, she could feel the stares boring into her back. She maintained her usual stoic expression, but she was just on the edge of tears. What if they were right? What if Touko _was_ too good for her? She couldn't have been happier to finally leave the confines of the school building and enter the wooded area in which her destination resided. She raised her head, taking in the sunlight that filtered through the trees. A wind blew past, whispering the ugly words in its wake.

_Does…Touko hear them, too?_

Arriving at the small, rundown building that was the Student Council headquarters, she opened the sliding door to find it…empty. Not a soul in sight. Taking a tentative step inside, Yuu basked in the silence. It was deafening. All she could hear was her own breathing and the occasional creak from the old wood.

Finally, the emotions she had been holding in all day broke from her heart like a dam collapsing.

Yuu fell to her knees and cried. Cried and cried and cried.

_They're right. All of them are right…I don't deserve Touko. I don't deserve to be by her._

She felt like curling into a ball and just disappearing.

That beautiful hair. The gorgeous smile. The being that radiated love and affection to all around her. She didn't deserve any it. The feelings of shame and unworthiness only stagnated in her body, enveloping her in a dark cloud of insecurity that she had never felt before. The malevolent mass was foreign, unusual, and it settled heavily in her mind. Yuu screwed her eyes shut and shook her head aggressively, trying to physically will the awful thoughts out of her head.

She didn't know long she had been on the ground when she heard the door begin to slide open. Snapped out of her thoughts, she quickly wiped at her eyes with her sleeve and stood up, forcing her normal facial expression back. She sighed and turned to welcome whoever it was when her breath was caught in her throat.

Touko raised an eyebrow. "Yuu? You're here early. The meeting doesn't start for another twenty minutes." She said, making her way over to her girlfriend. She cupped her cheeks in her hands and kissed her forehead. "How are you, love?"

Yuu's mind immediately shot out her scripted response. "I'm fine".

She could feel Touko freeze and pull away. The girl's expression had changed. It was now hard, her brows furrowed.

"You're lying."

Busted.

"You always say 'I'm fine' when you're not because you don't think it's important enough for me to worry about." Touko took Yuu by the hand and kissed her knuckles.

Yuu blushed under the attention.

"Now, are you going to tell me what's wrong or do I have to give you the silent treatment?" Touko asked.

Her short girlfriend raised an eyebrow. "You can't pull off threats very well. We both know you can't resist talking to me."

"Hey, I totally can! I just…need some practice. But I am serious. What's wrong, Yuu?"

Yuu hesitated for several moments. How would Touko respond? Would she think Yuu thought she didn't love her enough? Or would she just confirm her fears? However, all these fears were washed away when Touko squeezed her hand, looking earnestly into her eyes.

"Touko, are…are you embarrassed by me?" Yuu finally quickly spat out.

She received a blink in response. Once. Twice. Three times. "What? Why…why would I be embarrassed by you?"

"I know you can hear the talking too, Touko! Everything they say…how I don't deserve you." Yuu squeezed her eyes shut, unable to look her girlfriend in the eyes. "You're just so amazing and I'm just me! I'm nothing special, but you…you're so beautiful and smart and I'm none of those things and I MMMPH".

Yuu was effectively silenced by a pair of forceful lips against her own. Touko had one hand around her waist and another on the back of her head. The taller girl gently pushed Yuu backwards until her back hit the wall. Yuu whined against the kiss, putting both of her arms around Touko's neck. Opening her eyes a bit, she was startled to see Touko staring at her. Earnest, loving, concerned. After what seemed like forever, her girlfriend pulled back and rested her forehead against Yuu's.

"Yuu, you are my world, my everything, and no amount of gossip or rumors is going to change that. I couldn't be embarrassed by you if I tried. And I think what I just did says more than words ever will. I love you, no ifs, ands, or buts. Okay?" Touko brought her hands up to the smaller girls cheeks. "Please. Don't _ever _think I'm embarrassed or you're not good enough for me."

Yuu stared up into those grey eyes, her own brown ones beginning to well with tears. She gasped and latched herself onto Touko like a lifeline, sobbing into her school uniform. Touko protectively wrapped her arms around the girl's shoulders and tucked her head under her chin.

"I'll always love you, Yuu. No matter what."

Somehow finding the words in the midst of her crying, Yuu tightened her grip around her tall girlfriend. "I…I l-love you too…"

Touko smiled in spite of the circumstances. It had taken so long and so much effort to get Yuu to return her affections, and hearing her say "I love you" for the first time sounded like the most beautiful thing in the world and it only got more beautiful the more comfortable she became saying it.

Yes, Touko loved Yuu and Yuu loved Touko.

And no number of jealous bystanders, spiteful rumors, and cruel gossip would ever come between them. They had been through too much for that to happen.


End file.
